Work would start after July 1 and finish in Nov.

By David Judd

AS far as county staff can tell, Misner Dam is on schedule to be repaired this year.
Public Works General Manager Lee Robinson is pretty confident Norfolk County will have the work done by the end of 2018.
That’s if nothing unforeseen happens.
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry has not yet signed off on the project.
The county needs MNR approval before it can move forward with designs and hiring a contractor to repair the dam during the second half of this year.
The project is a couple of weeks behind a schedule that was issued last fall, Ms. Robinson told county councillors last Tuesday.
That’s not a significant delay, she said, promising to keep councillors up to date.
Norfolk has budgeted $1.1 million to repair the historic dam on the Lynn River in Port Dover.
Problems at the dam were found in 2009.
Since then, Silver Lake’s water level has been kept low to minimize the risk that the dam might wash out.
In November, Manager of Engineering Gary Houghton set out a timeline, which called for receiving a provincial permit this month.
Council would hire a contractor in May.
Work would start after July 1 and would finish in November.
The timeline might work out. And it might not, depending on the MNR, weather and how fast a contractor can get going.
“I’m uncomfortable saying a definite timeline,” Ms. Robinson said in an interview.
“I don’t see any reason to see not completing repairs in 2018,” she said.
But Ms. Robinson added, “We’re at the mercy of other people and other things.”
The MNR might demand something that affects the schedule, she said.
The contractor might want to start later than the earliest date of July 1.
And an early winter might prevent completion in 2018.
Port Dover Coun. John Wells said waiting for repairs is frustrating for the community and for county staff, who have no control over many factors.
Coun. Wells told The Maple Leaf he was pleased that the project had not been forgotten.
“It’s in the works and it’s progressing,” he said.